


Crumbling Statues

by cattesaber



Category: Parahumans Series - Wildbow
Genre: Case 01, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:35:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24951688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cattesaber/pseuds/cattesaber
Summary: The first time a truly dangerous villain made an apperance - before she was due. October, not September.The Quadumvirate strikes.
Relationships: Rebecca Costa-Brown | Alexandria & Hero (Parahumans)
Kudos: 12





	Crumbling Statues

Nothing about this seemed right. Even for her, this was too confident. A number of people were dead, the PRT had been called - she must know they were coming. Yet, the black and white striped woman didn’t seem to care, not moving from where she’d stationed herself. Alexandria allowed herself to frown, knowing that no one would be able to see under her visor.

The streets around were empty of any civilians - one way or another - PRT vans and squads keeping careful distance between the active site and them. A fresh bloodstain puddled in the road, unremarked upon. Cars beeped in the distance, people talked, but right here it was quiet.

Alexandria looked at the men near her, Legend talking through the comms, a heavy look on his face. Wanton violence didn’t sit well with him - his shoulders were set to brace, white knuckles as he flexed his fingers. Eidolon floated slightly higher, his cloak drifting around him, arms crossed. He was silent, measuring. She could guess what he was thinking, and dismissed it, turned her head away instead as she looked at the final cape left. The stern look didn’t suit him at all.

Alexandria let herself drift closer, flying just behind him, to the left. The noise of her cape must have given her away, but he didn’t look. Hero kept peering into the small screen in his hands.

She let herself frown a little harder, careful to keep it out of the parts of her face that could be seen. “She’s hiding something.”

“What?” Hero turned and looked up, sunlight shining on his helmet and reflecting into the ground. It landed on the puddle of blood, making it glitter.

“The Siberian,” she gestured to where they knew she was hiding. “She’s too confident. Not even a spot of wariness. We’re missing something.” Was the villain hiding - or plotting? Waiting until they were close enough to strike? The villain was a brute like Alexandria herself was, and yet from what they’d seen, more invincible. They didn’t know how strong she was.

“She might be, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take her.” Hero didn’t share her worry, secure in their power as a group. He stood straight, chin up. Ready, and without fear.

He was right, too. Many people had been confident when they faced them - but that never meant they’d _won._ Arrogant villains had fallen against them, time and time again. Nevertheless, she sighed. She couldn’t convince herself. Alexandria lightly shook her head. “When we go in I’ll be right behind you, in case.”

Hero huffed out through his nose, putting the screen back away as he did so. It was all fond, though, and he even let himself smile. “Brute back-up is always welcome. She’ll have a harder time punching you, I’m sure.”

“If you dodge faster you’ll never need to replace your armour.” She said, voice light, pointing out as past battle. Hero gave her a flat look, ruined by the uptick in his lips.

“You had to catch me out of the air one time…” Like her, he didn’t talk about the full situation back then - how his back up jetpack had also been crushed, how his hoverboots failed. She shook her head.

“I’m just saying-”

“-She’s stopped. Fifth floor.” Eidolon cut in, voice raised. All of them turned to him, then to Legend. Legend nodded.

“Let’s go.” He signaled to the PRT agents, and all of them went for the entrances.

They split up, Legend and Eidolon going for the back entrance, Eidolon flying high and Legend low. She lost sight of them when she and Hero went inside, the doors already broken inward. Alexandria kept to her word, not flying ahead like she could have, keeping slightly behind and flying low. He held his tinkertech pistol ready, but not pointed.

The building was eerie. More blood, on the wall, the floor. Bodies, too, of people that didn’t have a chance. Another mass murder under the Siberian’s belt. It was possible that some of them had escaped - cowered and hid until she’d passed them by, or they just hadn’t died of their injuries yet. Hero walked on the blood splatters, leaving footsteps on the tile.

It was unfortunate they couldn’t just enter through a window on the correct floor, but this hotel had massively wide windows, making it easier for their guests to see out - they couldn’t risk using them and being caught out. Instead, both of them flew up the space in between the stairs. Hero landed with a soft noise, leaving a small smear of blood.

The landing was quiet, and had fewer bodies too. Hero pointed at the doorway at the end of the hall, glancing at her. The Siberian was in there, likely busy with a victim or three.

They were there now, but in the end - they’d failed. People were dead, dying, suffering. This wasn’t being a hero, it was being a _clean up crew_. Alexandria felt sick in her stomach, but didn’t let it show on her face, not now. All they could do was catch the villain that had escaped them so far. She clenched her first.

The opening loomed, and they paused, waiting. The sound of glass shattering and Legend’s lasers spurred them on. Hero ran out, Alexandria now in front, floating higher in the large room.

The woman had blood covering her body, thick enough to hide some of her stripes. None of it was hers. She had been going for Legend, ignoring his lasers like they were less than a light breeze, but turned at the sound of them. Alexandria flew at her back, punching her with vicious strength, even using her back to kick off and get out of range.

Nothing worked. Not her strength, not the lasers, not Hero’s weapons, not even Eidolon’s powers. Everything was brushed off, even as the floor shattered and the room was destroyed. The villain threw a table hard enough it shattered into pieces when it hit the wall as Legend dodged. Alexandria grit her teeth.

It was a blur of powers and fighting, and no inch gained. They were _losing_ , unable to figure out how to even scratch or trap her.

The Siberian dived underneath Eidolon, completely ignoring him as he swore at her - and moving fast towards Hero. She plunged down too, a millisecond too slow. She’d grabbed Hero as the Siberian did, her hand through Hero’s elbow as Alexandria used all her power to move away. There was a spay of blood and Hero cried out, the rest of his arm falling to the floor with a thud.

Legend and Eidolon went for the Siberian harder, trying to distract her, trying to help Alexandria get the severely wounded Hero to safety. Spaces of altered time, lasers, blasts - the Siberian ran through them all, as Alexandria held Hero tight enough small dents were left in the shape of her fingers.

She hissed through her teeth she felt the brush of a hand, barely missing her. The next swipe went through her thigh, piercing it and going through the bone, coming out the other side. It was attached by a patch of skin, nothing more, and that ripped when it fell taut. Pain. Familiar, even now, many years after it had last haunted her. She tucked it behind her teeth, barely making a noise. Eioldon yelled in anger, Legend’s face furious beyond belief. Hero was still in her arms, they were still moving, and she crashed through the massive window like a gunshot. Pieces of glass rained down on the street outside, and loud, the PRT vans started shrieking, echoes loud in her ears.

Hero swore, and she could somehow hear him, his remaining hand touching her wrist. She kept on retreating away from the building knowing full well the Siberian could come out at any time.

Alexandria allowed herself to close her eyes for a moment, dread hard in her stomach.

_They’d lost._

* * *

She looked up at the sound of the door opening. Clarke tiredly smiled at her, his visor nowhere to be seen, dressed in civilian clothing. The end of his left arm shiny and pink, healed beyond what would have been possible years ago. Eidolon’s work - he’d been to her, too.

“Today fucking sucked,” he told her, walking towards the bed. Exhaustion didn’t sit well on him.

She sighed. “Yes.” Alexandria gestured to the infirmary bed, a silent offer which he took.

They sat side by side, her legs hanging off the bed next to his. Three legs and three arms between them, now.

“How’s your leg?”

“They’re already working on possible prosthetics,” she shrugged. Two - or three - for work, and one for civilian life. Some for function, some to look good while being more acceptable to ruin. Being Alexandria wouldn’t be kind on them.

“That’s not what I mean. I’ll be working on a prosthetic for you too, but...” Clarke looked at the empty space where her leg used to be, “It doesn’t hurt or anything?”

She shook her head. “Not anymore. Eidolon healed you?”

“Yeah. It’s completely healed already, pain free and everything.” He frowned, lines furrowing in his forehead, “doesn’t make it any better.”

“No, it doesn’t.” Alexandria - no, Rebecca - shifted and allowed her shoulder to press against his. “We lived though.”

Hero smiled at that, a bigger thing than the weak attempt earlier. “We did. We even know it was Manton now. He can be - dealt with.”

Rebecca gently, _gently_ squeezed his good arm. “He won’t know what hit him.”


End file.
